Private market yard plan is an encouraging move

Krish Iyer, CEO, Walmart India

I believe we should look at the Budget as a part of the process of governance and direction. We are encouraged by the fact that the new government at the centre under Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to collaborate with the states on the issue of GST introduction, which we think will boost investment as well as consumption.

A timebound introduction of the GST will surely help in building an integrated national market for goods and services and will reduce the cost of doing business. It will also bring down the prices.

Government's intent to reduce inflationary pressure is evident from the announcement of 'price stabilisation fund' and its earlier directive to the states on delisting fruits & vegetables from APMC. The government's vision to accelerate setting up of a National Market by collaborating with the state governments to reorient their respective APMC Acts and to provide for private market yards is encouraging.

We believe that modern trade can play a critical role in bridging the gap between the price paid by consumers and price realised by farmers, and will play an important role in containing food inflation in sustainably.

We'll continue to play an important role in this endeavour of bringing the best quality produce for our members at 'every day low prices' and contribute to build the back-end supply chain.

Our mission at Walmart India through our cash and carry operations is to 'enable small businesses to prosper' and all our efforts are geared towards achieving that objective. With presence of large number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in India and unorganised retail we bring the best to the retail industry in the country.

Through the Best Price Modern Wholesale stores, we serve kirana stores, small and medium enterprises, and numerous small retail shops. We are proud of our increasing contribution to the growth in the country, creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs, developing small suppliers and building supply chain among other things.

We continue to believe in the important value Walmart brings to India, including social and environmental benefits. India continues to be an exciting place for us and we continue to remain engaged and committed. We are working together with all the stakeholders and continue adding value to the economic growth of the country.